Do you prefer working at home or at cafes/pubs?

Dmitry

One of the major advantages of being a freelance translator is that you can work whenever and wherever you like. Some translators enjoy the comfort of their own homes while other prefer working at busy cafes or pubs.

What about you? Do you work at home all by your lonesome or do you need to have people around you?

eleonorang

Only main cities in Italy offer a decent amount of cafes in which you can stay and work as well as use sockets and wifi! In the rest of the country, 80% of bar hosts will show scorn if you occupy a table after you're done eating/drinking and possibly yell at you for using sockets and stealing power energy from them... And God forbid having a wifi people can use. Also, as you may already know, Italians like to speak very loud, so busy cafès are not optimal to work in

That being said, sometimes I feel the need to be surrounded by people and that's when I visit the local library or a couple of spots where I know I won't be disturbed, but usually I work at home also because my main workstation is a desktop and it's not always practical to transfer work files on my laptop

KarenMontaldi

Oh that's such a good question. Thankfully there are not shortages of quiet cafes and coworking spaces in the U.S. if you're someone who needs to have people around you. Personally though, I'm more often than not working from home (despite the tweet above, haha). If I had to be 100% honest as to why that is the case, I'd have to say that it really is just laziness AND I also don't like spending money on things that I can do myself (coffee, sandwiches, etc.), so paying for my cafe bill always annoys me a little ($5 dollars for a small latte?! Come on!).

Just like eleonorang though, I do feel the need to be surrounded by people once in a while. I have a tendency to withdraw from the world and only focus on work/school, so sometimes I force myself to get out of the house to make sure that I'm not completely turning into a hermit.

I do have to say that my productivity is way higher when I'm at a cafe though. I think that having people around me who are focused and doing their work encourages me to avoid procrastinating. I just wish going to cafes everyday wasn't so damn expensive! I could easily rent a small office space with that money 🤷

eleonorang

KarenMontaldi I do have to say that my productivity is way higher when I'm at a cafe though. I think that having people around me who are focused and doing their work encourages me to avoid procrastinating. I just wish going to cafes everyday wasn't so damn expensive!

Exactly! Which is why the library is great for me No need to pay every day and people are way more silent and focused than in a café...

KarenMontaldi I could easily rent a small office space with that money

Hey Karen, have you considered the idea of renting a desk or an office in a co-working space?

ninagruenewald

KarenMontaldi I also don't like spending money on things that I can do myself (coffee, sandwiches, etc.), so paying for my cafe bill always annoys me a little ($5 dollars for a small latte?! Come on!).

I agree! Haha. I love working at cafes, but getting there, here in Canberra, takes me at least 20 mins, then getting all set up, pay some money for a drink or food... and then back again for 20mins... I really only do that if I feel like I have already achieved a chunk of good value work and then I maybe go to a cafe in the afternoon. But then the other thing is, here in Canberra, cafes close at 3!!! or 4 or 5!! From Sweden and other places that I am used, they are open until 10 or so. I would LOVE to go work at a cafe at 5, but it is too late then

And in the morning I am very keen to get a good chunk of work done asap, so at home is best for me. I try to make my home a relaxing, clean and tidy space without too much distraction. Apart from the dog, the chooks and the geese

ninagruenewald

eleonorang Hey Karen, have you considered the idea of renting a desk or an office in a co-working space?

I really like that idea. I think when I get to the point that I earn enough I might rent a table every now and then at a coworking place, to interact with other creative and entrepreneurial minds. I am only a bit worried that I ll be distracted too easily by all the new shiny things

LindaLeuss

I am working from home although sometimes I feel that I become more introverted. Frankly speaking, I think it is a bit weird to go out from home to cafe for working.

eleonorang

LindaLeuss I know! Especially in some cultures, cafés are almost exclusively perceived as 'recreation places' and associated with time off work, relax and so on This is also the reason why the concept of 'working in a cafè' is having a hard time getting established in some countries (such as Italy, as I mentioned above).
However, I believe that a few freelancers start to feel this loneliness after a while and something snaps in them, and they need to be able to work surrounded by people. Also, I find it nice to be able to sip a coffee or treat myself to a slice of cake without having to bake one

eleonorang

ninagruenewald here in Canberra, cafes close at 3!!! or 4 or 5!! From Sweden and other places that I am used, they are open until 10 or so. I would LOVE to go work at a cafe at 5, but it is too late then

OMG is that so? How's that possible? What do people do after 5 pm? Where do they meet? What do they drink?

ninagruenewald I love working at cafes, but getting there, here in Canberra, takes me at least 20 mins, then getting all set up, pay some money for a drink or food... and then back again for 20mins..

I feel you, I can't help but see this a slight loss of time... But I guess there are still benefits to going out in terms of happiness and sense of satisfaction! We may just go crazy if we don't stop thinking about time even for a moment... that could be a chance to forget about any time we're losing and focus on the benefits of a walk outside or some moments spend in the company of other human beings

ninadepalma

ninagruenewald But then the other thing is, here in Canberra, cafes close at 3!!! or 4 or 5!! From Sweden and other places that I am used, they are open until 10 or so.

In the US, cafes aren't usually open much past 7-8. Depends on the place. Sometimes there are cafes that also function as bars, and those tend to be open later. But the cafe/bar divide is pretty strict here, haha. People don't really go to cafes in the evening. But! That said, our cafes are almost always open later than 3-4!

ninagruenewald I can go into the garden, watch the chickens and cuddle the dog.

Sounds so nice!

ninagruenewald Are you gonna pick one day per week that you will spend working at a cafe? Enjoy trying out all those places!

Thanks! I'm thinking something like that, yeah. Depends on the rhythm I find myself getting into here. I still have quite a lot of unpacking to do, so I might stick to only one day a week to be out of the house.

ninagruenewald

I know right? People here are very morning active. At night people go out and have drinks, but somehow I only know morning active people. Hahahaha. Oh well. Just gotta adjust.

eleonorang But I guess there are still benefits to going out in terms of happiness and sense of satisfaction!

Totally! So, I do go to a cafe, when I feel like having a slower day or when I have reached many goals. But I have to say I LOVE working from home. It is so quiet. Usually, I am very good at concentrating and don't distract myself. ANd I can go into the garden, watch the chickens and cuddle the dog. So, that is quite nice as well

Oh wow! I love all vegan cafés! We have one here and they are rock'n'roll themed! Yeah, I prefer if the music is only in the background. As long as it is not too loud I can work with nearly any kind of music. Are you gonna pick one day per week that you will spend working at a cafe? Enjoy trying out all those places! I love trying out new cafés!

ninadepalma

Just moved to a new city and decided to scope out some coffee shops in the area as potential work spaces. The first one I went to (this morning) is an all-vegan cafe that only plays punk/metal music, haha. It was a nice/spacious place (and they have wifi), but I don't see myself going there to work all the time without headphones Definitely an interesting idea for a cafe, but perhaps not the best music for concentrating on work.